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Mobile App Download and Usage
The beginning of 2020 was completely different from last year and obviously, the trend of downloading apps in the first half of 2020 has been different too, especially after the worldwide lockdown, when many people connected online through various apps.
As we all know, apps can’t succeed without downloads. It sounds so simple, but it’s not. You could have the best app on the planet, but if nobody is downloading it, you will not make a dime.
Nowadays, people all over the world are using smartphones and tablets, so as mobile app usage grows in popularity, the number of app downloads worldwide increases as well.
From a global view, there were more than 205 billion app downloads in 2018, representing a 15% increase compared to 2017. Experts predict that in 2022 there will be a 25% increase in global app downloads, expecting the total number to exceed 258 billion app downloads.
Free vs. Paid downloads
98% of app revenue worldwide comes from free apps and just a few people are willing to pay for a game, or a mobile app. This is a very important aspect when you want to develop a mobile app. It is not wrong to launch a paid app, but if you charge for downloads when you are launching the app, fewer mobile users will download it. That’s because most of them are used to downloading apps for free.
Google Play vs. App Store Downloads
There are only two platforms where mobile users can download apps from. Users who prefer iOS devices download apps from the Apple App Store, while Android users use Google Play Store.
Studies and statistics worldwide show us that there are more downloads coming from the Google Play Store. At the same time, the Google Play Store download rate grew by 14%, while the Apple App Store only experienced a 3% growth rate.
Most Popular Google Play Store App Categories
The top 3 categories of mobile apps, on Google Play Store were Tools, Communication and Video players and editors. This is a bit unexpected, taking into consideration that the App Store was dominated by the gaming category. However, just because an app has been installed on a device, it doesn’t mean that it’s being used.
Mobile App Usage
Now that we know how users download apps, let’s see how people are using them. According to some studies, the average smartphone user spends 2 hours and 15 minutes each day using apps. The majority of this time is spent using only three apps, which means that people are downloading apps, but not using them. In fact, 75% of apps are used once after being downloaded, and then never used again.
Mobile apps are part of our lives. We can’t live without them in this technological world. Every piece of analyzed data shows that the mobile app trend is upward, which is encouraging for anyone who has a mobile app or plans to build one. If you don’t have one and you are ready to develop it, contact us.
